2014-03-18-CPC-min - Laserfiche WebLink

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Minutes of the Community Preservation Committee Tuesday, March 18, 2014 4:00 pm, Parker Room Town Office Building, 1625 Massachusetts Avenue Present: Committee Members: Marilyn Fenollosa, Chair; Richard Wolk, Vice-Chair; Richard Canale, Norman Cohen, David Horton, Jeanne Krieger, Leo McSweeney, Robert Pressman and Sandra Shaw. Administrative Assistant : Nathalie Rice Also in attendance were Joe Pato, member of the Board of Selectmen (BOS); David Kanter, Vice- Chair of the Capital Expenditures Committee (CEC), Glenn Parker, Chair of the Appropriation Committee (AP) and Rob Addelson, Assistant Town Manager for Finance. The meeting was called to order at 4:04 pm. by Ms. Fenollosa. 1.Updates on FY15 Projects and Funding a.) Cary Memorial Upgrades Project, Article 2, Special Town Meeting - Rob Addelson, Assistant Town Manager for Finance was in attendance to discuss the funding options for the Cary Memorial Upgrades project, currently estimated at $8,241,350 (and proposed to be bonded over a 10-year period). Mr. Addelson explained that at the Board of Selectmen’s meeting on the previous evening, Selectman Joe Pato presented an updated estimate of student growth which indicated a possible increased demand for school facilities in the upcoming 5+ years. Mr. Pato then reiterated his points, explaining that current trends in Lexington’s demographics showed a significant increase in recent years (from 20% to 45%) in the number of families with school age children who reside in apartments. This growing demographic, among other factors, forced Mr. Pato to rethink the Cary Memorial Upgrades project and the wisdom of burdening the Town with long term debt. Mr. Pato stated that if a new school was needed in Lexington, the cost could be up to $50M, particularly if land costs were included. He noted that although the renovations to the Cary Memorial Building were necessary, they were to some extent discretionary. He said he voted against the Cary project for this reason. (The Board of Selectmen’s vote was 3-2, with the Chair siding with Mr. Pato.) Ms. Fenollosa responded to Mr. Pato’s comments by noting that the CPA was passed in Lexington because historic preservation, open space acquisition, affordable housing and recreation, have historically been poorly funded because they arediscretionary. She said it was the intent of the State statute to specifically “represent” these important community needs. She stressed the importance of leveraging State funding which provides Lexington with nearly a quarter of its CPA funding via the “State match”. Ms. Fenollosa stated that the Cary Memorial Upgrades project was a CPC priority, having been under consideration for over three years. Delaying the project, she cautioned, would ultimately make it more expensive. She asked if Mr. Pato also objected to the funding of the Community Center Renovation project, to which he replied that he did not, since that project involved minimal debt ($451,000) and was necessary to 1